The Fall
by Leapingspirit
Summary: Go and read Blood and Desire and then Dark Wings to understand this. The time of the crimson moon has come and while Kouen struggles to contain his feral side Akamizu is planning a war. Yaoi lots of violence etc.
1. Chapter 1

The Fall

_**Yosh! Now begins the third installment of the 'Lycan Chronicles' as I've so lovingly dubbed the currently 3 part series involving Kouen. If you haven't read Blood and Desire and then Dark Wings chances are you won't get a word of what's in this story so go read them cause this is set about five months after Dark Wings. And at the beginning of every chapter will be part of the song 'Monster' by Skillet cause I'm awesome that way and it fits the story. Oh, and there's lots of graphic detail in this one so if you don't have a strong stomach than I suggest hitting that pretty little back button at the top of your screen.**_

Chapter 1- The Rise of the Crimson Moon

_'The secret side of me, I never let you see. I keep it caged but I can't control it. So stay away from me, the beast is ugly, I feel the rage and I just can't hold it.'_

"Today begins the first day of the Crimson Moon Festival." a perky news reporter said to the camera, the hustle and bustle of a lively festival roaring behind her. "This once in a life time phenomena is said to bring good luck to the good, and bad luck to the bad. With each day the red moon rises, the fortune or misfortune of the lucky and unlucky increases."

On the other end of town, away from the festival, a family of three- a husband, wife, and three year old boy, plus a labradoodle- were relaxing at home. They were one of few families that were staying at home, preferring the quiet life to the city life. The wife turned her head toward the back door as she heard a few yelps then some snuffling and scratching at the door. "Kai wants in." she commented as the child stood and tottered to the door, opening it with some difficulty.

The sight that greeted him was everything but a labradoodle. It was a huge werewolf, a little smaller than a rhinoceros, with fur that was auburn but with silver tips, making it appear to glow. It had a red ridge of fur along its spine starting from between its ears and going down to mid-back. Its hands were huge, with short strong fingers and claws that were three inches long and black as night plus long saber-tooth tiger quality fangs hanging out of its mouth. From its mouth also hung a blue collar with golden fur and dark sticky fresh blood dripping from it. Around the beast's maw was blood as well as on its paws. It looked the child over, snarling, its eyes glowing like a specter's as the child reached up innocently to pet it.

The child let out a yelp as the werewolf moved forward to try and squeeze its enormous frame into the small door, unable to make it through. "Doggy's being mean." the child cooed. His mother came into the room and let out a high pitched scream as she saw the beast, making it let out a ear shattering roar and attempt to get in the door again. The husband ran into the room brandishing a rifle that he had gotten in his days as a big game hunter, cursing when he saw the beast. He shot at it, hitting it dead center between the eyes but the bullet stopped as soon as it hit its skull. It let out another furious roar as the bullet fell to the ground with a small clack.

The family watched in horror as it backed up and charged at the door. A huge hole was created as it slammed through the brick and wood to reach its victims, tearing into them with claws and fangs. It snatched the child up in its jaws, crushing down as the child wailed in fear in agony, his cries cut off by a gurgle of blood coming from his mouth. It dropped the child's half dead form and took it in two huge hands, tearing it in half with a horrifying squelch in front of his parents before leaping at the father who tried to bludgeon it with the butt of his gun but there was no effect. The werwolf sliced into the man's stomach, spilling his entrails on the floor before biting down on his skull, popping it like a beach ball. It looked around for the woman, sniffing the air as its blood lust rose at the scent of human blood, turning back to the two mutilated corpses.

Something seemed to over take it then. It backed up, shaking its head in a confused manner letting out growls and snarls, falling backwards out of the hole in the house away from the dead humans. It let out a howl and ran, crashing through fences in a blind panic, blood drying and matting in its fur. It stopped in an alley, letting out confused growls, clawing at its face and forearms and pacing back and forth in a frantic manner. It looked up at the crimson colored full moon that was high in the sky and growled at it as though saying '_this is your fault.'_ It paced and growled and clawed at itself and the walls around it, leaving deep ruts and sometimes tearing straight through it in its attempt to contain its blood lust.

**-The Next Morning-**

"Police investigators are still trying to determine just what killed these innocent people. The wife of the family was found hiding in an upstairs closet muttering about wolf-men and blood. She is being checked over by professionals and her condition will be announced once we gain more information. If you have any information on what happened here call the police hotline. No names will be asked." said a male reporter, a cloth held over his nose to keep the smell of dead bodies from reaching his nose. No one noticed the short haired brunette girl who was slowly making her way toward the house in the back ground. She wore a black leather biker jacket over a navy t-shirt and jeans with combat boots and a baseball hat on her head to conceal her face. To put it simply, she dressed like a boy because she could and because she didn't particularly like being a girl.

As soon as she stepped into the house, she gagged on the stench of twelve hour old dead people and looked around. In a corner crouched a middle-aged man and a young child, transparent and pale. "Its alright. I just want to help." she said softly in a slightly deep but still girlish voice. "My name's Alex. Can you tell me what happened?" she asked, crouching a few meters away from the ghosts. They simply stared at her with huge eyes, shaking violently. _Since when do I do the work of a Soul Reaper? _She thought with a sigh, turning to the back room to find the bodies which hadn't been removed yet. The remains of the humans were laying strewn on the floor with pools of drying blood around them. Sunlight filtered through a massive hole in the back wall and Alex saw a blood trail lead out to another pool of blood and some golden fur laying in the back yard. "Well what ever it is, it either has a wound and gold fur, or it ate a dog." she commented, following massive, bloody paw prints to a hole in the fence. It looked like a train had plowed through it.

A phone rang in her pocket as she stooped to get a better look at the paw prints. _"So what did you find?" _asked a very deep male voice on the other end.

"Well, it was a werewolf. And it absolutely mutilated two humans and clawed a third. And I think it ate a dog."

_"Yuck." _said a girl's voice while the deep voice in the background protested. _"I think we should let Kouen know that a rogue werewolf is on the prowl. He'll know what to do." _

"Right, and I'll call Amanda and ask if there's anything linking he Crimson Moon and werewolves, this could affect Kouen too, despite the fact that he's more stubborn than a mule when it comes to his instincts." Alex sighed. "What about you? Find out anything from the hysterical woman?"

_"A very detailed description." _replied the male voice, having stolen the phone back from the other girl. _"Auburn fur tipped in silver giving the beast the illusion of glowing. A red ridge of fur running from between its ears to half way down its back. A single dark gray finger on its middle finger on its left hand. Short muscular fingers like the Beast from 'Beauty and the Beast' with three or four inch long black claws. Glowing, pupiless green eyes, long fangs. And a scar."_

"A scar?" Alex yelped, the blood draining from her face. "What kind of scar?"

_"The woman didn't say, she broke down into hysterics before we could get that out of her. But Kouen's not the only auburn furred, scar faced werewolf out there if that's what you're thinking. Speaking of, have you heard any thing from him? He was supposed to come back from Germany yesterday. He had said something about visiting a relative, but I think he just needed a break from Jin and Toushiro."_

"No, he was visiting an old friend of his father's. The one he said he's named after." Alex corrected, following the trail of paw prints, broken fences, and blood through town. She came to a halt when she stepped into an alley and saw a tall figure stretched out on its stomach. "Oh shit... I'm gonna have to call you guys back."

_"What did you find?" _

"Not anything good." she ended the call and slid the phone back in her jacket pocket. Blood covered the figure, matting in his hair and all on his shredded clothes. Through the blood and the fact that he was face down, Alex couldn't tell the identity, though his scent was unmistakable. "Damn it all..." she muttered, rolling the teenager over to reveal the easily recognized face of Kouen. In his left hand, he tightly clutched a blue and bloody dog collar so hard that his knuckles were white. Alex checked his pulse, finding it strong and pulled back an eye lid to see his bright yet dark green eyes to be rolled back. He was obviously passed out from fatigue. Healed claw marks were on his face and arms, as well as what looked like a bullet wound between his eyes. "Kouen what have you done...?" the girl whispered. She ran her hands over the new wounds, healing them to nothing but slightly darker scars with her miniscule healing magic.

She picked him up, hefting his taller frame onto her back without difficulty and flitted out of sight. She reappeared at her home in the local rail yard where she and a couple friends had pieced together some old rail cars and turned them into a small home. Heaving him through the door, the girl set him down on the couch and pulled out her phone. She dialed a number, getting an answer on the first ring. _"Yeah house cat." _Jin replied on the other end.

"I need you down at the rail yard. Leave Toushiro."

_"Why what happened?" _Jin asked, concerned.

"I'll fill you in when you get here." she grunted shortly. After about five minutes of impatient pacing Alex heard Jin knock on the door. "About damn time." she growled as she opened the door.

"So what did you- oh my god..." he trailed off, seeing Kouen's bloodied form on the couch. "What happened?"

"Well, he killed a three year old and his father, ate a dog, and mentally broke the wife of the family." Alex turned to Jin. "Do you know if the Crimson Moon has any... special effects on werewolves?"

"No. I'm a young demon remember. I'm only a century and a half old." Jin shook his head. "The Crimson Moon happens once every two hundred years remember. You're thousands of years old, you tell me. What effects does it have on werewolves?"

Alex leveled him with an icy glare. "I wouldn't know either. I've never associated with werewolves until Kouen became one. And Shadow wouldn't know either, he always hated werewolves until Kouen became one too." she sighed. "We may as well get him cleaned up. If he wakes up covered in blood and doesn't remember what happened, he'll have a stroke."

**-Werwolf realm, same time-**

Mizu, a young silver haired, navy blue eyed werewolf sighed as he followed his father through the many corridors that made up the palace of the werewolf realm. He kept asking Akamizu if he could visit his half-brother, Kouen, in the human realm, but the older wolf kept refusing. Mizu knew that his father was planning something evil, and wanted to warn his half-brother about it but Akamizu had declared that no wolf was to leave the realm until he deemed other wise. _Stingy bastard..._ he growled to himself. He was about twenty years in human years, but was the equivalent of an eight year old with the mind of a genius. He often teased Kouen; when he got the chance to talk with him; that one day he would be smarter than him but knew that that would never happen. Kouen was absolutely brilliant, able to prove any theory or scientific explanation wrong or right with his over the top smarts.

For instance, he proved the theory of evolution wrong. It was general knowledge that that all creatures stemmed from the same species, but what actually happened is- in Kouen's words- the first demon was created and it mated with that creature. Their hybrid child was able to give up its demonic side, creating two separate beings and the two beings, mated with other organisms of the same species of its mortal parent and produced offspring, creating a different species. This cycle continued until all the species of the world were created after millions of years. Man was by far the worst out come of this demon-mortal interbreeding. Then the werewolves and vampires were created by a virus that was circulating. Those 'mutants' as they were called at the time produced offspring and those cycles continued up until present time where they were now.

Mizu sighed. That was one of the simpler and more obvious theories that his half-brother had proven wrong. He wished that he could at least compare to him, but knew that it was hopeless.

"Stand straight Mizu. Look like the prince that you are." Akamizu snapped, breaking the young wolf from his thoughts. Mizu winced, not liking being called a prince, but straightened his posture and continued to follow his father to the throne room. "My plan will soon be put into action. The army is at its greatest now all we have to do is get rid of your pesky half-brother. He's the only one standing in my way of becoming the most powerful being in all the realms."

It was true. Not only was Kouen smart, but he was strong. He is said to be the most powerful werewolf, or living being for that matter, to ever exist. He was immensely strong, able to demolish an entire realm with the wave of his hand but the thing that held him back was his personality. Kind and compassionate. And when in battle, he dampened his powers to make it seem like the enemy had a fighting chance, not to be mean, just to give the some hope before he killed them. It was his way of saying sorry, no matter who he had to kill. But Kouen didn't like to kill, he didn't even like raising his voice to anyone, no matter how often he had to do so. Akamizu called it weak, but Mizu thought that that was a quality that a true leader should have. Akamizu was sadistic and cruel, striking down anyone in his path without batting an eyelash, and he was right behind Kouen on the power scale; a demon called Shadow right behind Akamizu.

"Damn his father's fallen angel blood. That blood line gave him even more power and makes things all the more difficult for me to kill him." Mizu said nothing. If he did, he would have been hit. However, he wished that there was something he could do to sedate his father's lust for blood and war even though he knew that there was no way to do so and get out alive. That was why he was King of the werewolves after all. He was the strongest. "He killed that weakling Aizen years ago, bringing a halt to that war with his own disloyalty. But we dealt him a sharp blow oh yes, we killed his precious Soul Reaper lover." Mizu didn't dare tell Akamizu that that Soul Reaper had been reincarnated fifteen years ago. If he did, then things would get worse faster than Mizu wanted them to.

"Father, may I go visit Angel for the day?" Mizu asked politely, his navy eyes hopeful. Anything to get away from Akamizu's psychotic rants.

"Go. Be back by the banquet though." the older wolf snapped, glaring at his son with his cold amber eyes. Mizu nodded and walked off quickly. As soon as he was out of sight though, he ran out of the palace, jumping the walls and sprinting into the forest that surrounded it. Pulling out the phone Akamizu didn't know he had, he speed dialed his half-brother, getting his voice mail automatically. Cursing, he dialed Alex, who was the next best person to tell of Akamizu's plans. She was trustworthy and prompt, more so than Shadow, who was more powerful and had experience leading a realm.

"Come on come on come on..." he muttered as the phone rang.

_"Hello?" _the cat demon picked up on the third ring.

"Where's Kouen? I tried calling him and got his voice mail." Mizu asked straight off.

_"Um... he's passed out. Why? What do you need Mizu?"_

"Akamizu's going to launch an attack on the human realm and Soul Society. He wants to kill Kouen too to gain more power." Mizu paced frantically, running a hand through his silver hair. "Would it be possible for you to open a portal to the human realm for me?"

_"No but as soon as-what?" _there was silence for a minute before Alex spoke to Mizu again. _"Jin says he can."_

"Jin?" Mizu shook his head. "Never mind. Tell him to hurry though. Once Akamizu figures out that I'm not where I said I would be, he'll come looking." as soon as he finished his sentence, a rift of darkness opened up to his left. "I'll be there in a couple seconds." he said, ending the call. Stepping through the portal, he was immediately sucked into the human realm stumbling to a halt in Alex's train/home.

"Jin, take him home and keep an eye on him." Alex was saying to a blonde boy of about eighteen. "Oh, hi Mizu." she said dismissively. She turned back to Jin. "Don't tell Toushiro about any of this, just say that he got in an accident and was knocked out. And try to keep him calm, we don't know what could trigger that strange form-"

"The time of the Crimson Moon does it." Mizu interrupted. "It won't effect me 'cause I haven't had my first transformation yet, but it effects any mature werewolf. It makes them go feral and the transformation can be triggered any time day or night if we get any sort of negative emotion flowing through us." Alex and Jin exchanged fearful glances paling dramatically.

"So you're saying that he can go feral at any time?" Jin asked.

"Yes. That's what I just said isn't it?" Mizu snapped, sounding very much like his half-brother.

Alex rolled her eyes. "Take him home." she ordered to Jin. He nodded and walked down a thin hall and into a room, not coming back out. "Tell me everything." she said to Mizu, sitting down in a chair in the living room. Mizu sat on the couch and started his explanation.

_** Yay Mizu! I originally wasn't going to put him in this chapter, but I figured that it would make it flow better and lengthen it other wise the chapter would be half this length. And I suppose this is a belated birthday present for Warrior Goddess of Flames aka Amanda since she didn't invite me to her party. (glares at Amanda with narrowed eyes) You will pay for this later woman! Anyway enjoy and review!**_


	2. Chapter 2

The Fall

_**Mer... in the last chapter when Alex says 'don't tell Toushiro' about blah blah blah, I meant to put 'don't tell Kouen' about blah blah blah. By then my brain was short circuiting from the high amounts of yaoi I had been reading before so... yeah.**_

Chapter 2- Lock Me Away

_'Its scratching on the walls, in the closet in the halls. It comes alive and I can't control it. Hiding under the bed, in my body in my head. Why won't somebody come and save me from this? Make it end.'_

Kouen woke with a sneeze and a groan, sitting up slowly clutching his head. He had a massive headache and didn't know why. He was pretty sure he wasn't drunk the night before, and didn't remember anything that happened so he figured he wasn't hung over. _So what did I have a collision course with?_ He thought, rubbing his sore temples. Cracking his eyes open, he saw that he was in his own bed and that it was about noon, and that he had magically changed clothes over night. He distinctly remembered wearing a tux and dress slacks from a dinner he had gone to with his father's friend in Germany the day before and had gone a head and worn it on the plane trip home. Now he was in a plaid button up and jeans.

"The beast awakes!" said a falsely surprised voice from the door to his bedroom. Kouen glared a Jin but sighed. "You got hit by a car in case you're wondering what happened to your head."

"I was wondering why I had a migraine." Kouen muttered, swinging his legs over the side of the bed and standing up shakily. He walked past Jin and into the den where Hitsugaya was stretched out on the couch watching television idly.

"Yeah. The doctors said that you had to stay calm or it could send you into shock." Jin continued, following the werewolf, and gaining Hitsugaya's attention.

"Him? Calm?" the boy said skeptically. "Really Jin, what planet are you from." Jin made slicing motions across his throat behind Kouen to shut him up, shaking his head frantically as Kouen rolled his eyes at the boy.

"I'm capable of being calm. I just don't do it often." Kouen snorted. "Anyway, I would get something to eat but I'm actually feeling kind of sick. There's this strange taste in my mouth that I can't place." he noticed Jin pale and raised an eyebrow. "What's eating you?" he moved Hitsugaya's feet and sat down on the couch.

"Hopefully... not you..." he muttered, just loud enough for Kouen to hear. The werwolf rolled his eyes and turned his attention to the TV just as a news report was coming on.

"Tonight is the second night of the Crimson Moon festival but the spirits of the suburbs have been dampened by the murders of the-" Kouen muted the television with a pale face.

"Please tell me she didn't say the Crimson Moon festival." he muttered, his hands shaking. The silence that met him made him pale more and he jumped up suddenly, grabbing his cell phone from the counter and frantically dialing Amanda in America. "Pick up already." he snarled into the phone.

_"What the fuck do you want?" _the blond cat demon snarled on the other line, having obviously been woken up. Kouen replied in English so that Jin and Hitsugaya couldn't understand what he was going to say.

"Please tell me there's nothing linking werewolves and the Crimson Moon." he asked in a shaking voice, forcing himself to remain calm though he could feel panic rising inside him. There was silence over the other end.

_"I don't know why? I thought the Crimson Moon wasn't for another decade."_

"No its this week. Last night was the first night and I think something happened because I can't remember anything from the time I left the air port until I woke up five minutes ago." one of his hands had found his hair and was tangling in it. Kouen tugged nervously at his hair as he heard wind rush past the phone on the other end as Amanda sprinted to her extensive library. There was a few minutes of tense silence before Amanda laughed nervously.

_"Kouen. Sweetie." _Kouen's hopes immediately died. Amanda only called him 'sweetie' if she wanted to annoy him or if she had really bad news. _"On the Crimson Moon a werewolf will go feral at any form of negative emotion. Sometimes any bit of emotion regardless of whether its positive or negative will trigger a transformation. And... the first night is the when the moon has the weakest effect. The last night is the strongest."_

Kouen sat down heavily, taking deep breaths to keep himself calm. "Oh no..." he breathed.

_"What do you think you did?"_

"Killed a father and his son." he belched, holding a hand over his mouth as something tried to fight its way back up but he swallowed it with a grimace. "And I think I swallowed a dog." he continued in a strangled voice. That was the breaking point for Amanda. Kouen could hear her running to what he assumed was her bathroom and almost dropped the phone when she started throwing up. It took what little will power the werewolf had left to keep himself from doing the same. _That explains the sick feeling and the strange taste._ He mused, keeping as calm as he could as anger at himself, panic, and deep sadness at his weakness rose in his chest, making it hard for him to breathe. Standing up shakily, he made his way to his bedroom and closed the door with a soft click, leaning against it and sinking to the floor, his legs folded up to his chest, feeling tears pricking at his eyes. "What should I do?" he whispered, not really expecting a response.

_"What do you think you should do?" _Amanda asked, obviously out of things to puke up. Kouen ran a hand through his hair and across his neck with a sigh, still finding it hard to breath.

"I refuse to go to the werewolf realm. Akamizu would either never let me leave or kill me. I guess I'll have Shadow lock me up in the kitsune sector of the demon realm." he felt an intense heat rising up inside him and gulped. "Amanda, call Alex or Shadow and send them over here. We have a problem." he gasped, clutching his chest as the heat reached his heart, squeezing it like a possessive hand.

_"What do you mean problem?"_

"Just do it!" he snapped, dropping the phone and clutching his head as the heat spread through him. He felt his conscious mind being pushed away and let out a snarl of pain as he tried to stop the pending transformation. He felt his body change, bending over and pressing his forehead against the floor, snarling and yelping in pain as he tried to stop himself from going feral. He was almost able to stop it but his control snapped at the last second and he let out a guttural howl.

The door opened behind him and Jin jumped on him in his tiger form, bowling the werewolf over with a growl. Kouen snarled at him, narrowing his now pupiless green eyes as he grew and his fur took on silver tips and a red ridge grew along his spine. His lips drew back as his fangs elongated past his lower jaw and barked lowly. _I won't hurt him!_ His inner mind yelled even as his body moved to attack. _Jin run!_ He tried to howl at the tiger in front of him, who was ready to attack again, his claws digging into the carpet. Kouen's inner mind watched in horror as his body moved on its own accord, leaping at Jin with out stretched hands, ready to rip him to pieces.

Jin dodged, scoring his claws down Kouen's side as the werewolf thundered past, wincing his apology. He yowled at Kouen, wanting him to return to normal, but knew that once he was feral, the only thing that would drop him was extreme fatigue. The feral wolf growled, the gashes on his side dripping blood for a couple seconds before healing. _Please Jin run!_ Jin could see the conflict in the wolf's empty eyes as Kouen crouched to charge again but a yell of "Stop!" made both of their heads snap to the door to see Hitsugaya standing there with fear written across his face. He stared wide eyed at Kouen, obviously scared of him but he took a brave step forward. Kouen was instantly in his face, growling at him but obviously making an effort to restrain himself.

"Toushiro don't make any movements." Jin warned, creeping up behind the werewolf about to pounce but Kouen spun and swatted him away with a roar. Jin smacked into the wall and slid down with a groan, barely keeping his head up. Kouen took a step forward, but a pair of arms around his arm stopped him. His head snapped down and he snarled but it was cut short as Hitsugaya looked up at him with pleading eyes.

"Please stop." the boy whispered his voice choked. Kouen let out a confused whine, seeming to deflate some. He reached around with his other hand, wrapping it around the boy's body and bringing him up to his face, Hitsugaya's feet being off the ground- Kouen being about the size of a rhino. And that's in a crouched position.

Kouen tilted his head to the side, seeming not to recognize the boy he was holding. Hitsugaya reached up and ran his hands over Kouen's muzzle, a calming look on his face even though his eyes brimmed with fear. Hitsugaya ran his fingers over the scar that ran across Kouen's left eye and then down to his jaw bone, feeling the surprisingly soft fur there. "Come back to me." he whispered as Kouen brought his other hand up to gently stroke the boy's head, a look of wonder on his face, his intellect having been reduced to that of a wild beast. He let out a soft growl, seeming to say 'mine' as he put Hitsugaya down and crouched to be eye level with him, his tail waving lightly in the air.

A groan behind Hitsugaya made Kouen's head snap up with a snarl as Jin stood on shaky paws. Kouen roared threateningly at the tiger but stopped when Hitsugaya placed his hands on the feral wolf's chest and gave him a small push. "No. Its alright, he's a friend." he said, trying to sedate Kouen's feral side. It seemed to work because Kouen blinked hard and his pupils returned. He shrank, his fur taking on a fully auburn color, the silver tips and red ridge disappeared. He slowly shrank until he was the size he normally was in his hybrid form, nine feet tall when standing up right. His eyes rolled and he fell to the side, passing out just as Shadow and Alex kicked in the apartment and ran in.

"What did we miss?" Shadow panted, staring down at Kouen as he slowly changed back into his human form. "Shit he went feral didn't he?" he didn't expect and answer as he crouched next to Kouen to check his pulse and breathing.

"Shadow take him and lock him up in a cell in the demon realm. We can't risk this happening while he's in public. Someone else could get killed." Alex ordered, daring the fox to oppose her commands.

"Wait a minute what just happened? Why did this happen." Hitsugaya demanded. Alex and Shadow exchanged glances and Alex sighed.

"Take him." she grunted shortly to Shadow, who nodded and disappeared with Kouen. "Jin didn't tell you did he?" she asked, glaring at the tiger as he staggered forward.

Jin snorted and sat down heavily. "You never told me to."

Alex kicked him in the side and snarled. "You moron! I said not to let Kouen know, not to not let Toushiro know. Listen better or get your ears checked." she snapped, her pupils small slits. "Its bad enough that we have to worry about Kouen, but now Mizu tells us that Akamizu's planning a damn bloody war! These things should be obvious Jin! I didn't want you to tell Kouen because he would get worked up and this would have happened sooner. You're lucky he sees Toushiro as a mate otherwise you would both be dead." her words were harsh, each one being a dagger of ice dipped in acid, but she had a point. And a good one at that. "Be happy that the cells that Shadow has in the kitsune sector are inescapable."

"Yeah, but if what Mizu says is true about this war, we'll need Kouen. He's the only one with enough power to kill the bastard." Hitsugaya was getting fed up with being left out and was getting more and more confused.

"Would someone please explain what is going on?" he said in an icy tone. Both feline demons looked at him and exchanged a glance and a sigh. This was going to be a long day.

**-Kitsune Sector, demon realm; prison-**

Kouen groaned and forced his eyes open, pain lancing through his body as he rolled over. "What in hell's name happened?" he groaned, sitting up as he noticed that he was in a prison cell. Standing up, he looked around and growled to himself as he scented the unmistakable scent of kitsunes. "Damn it Shadow..." he growled, even though he was going to wind up here, with or without his consent. He looked down at his hands and sighed, burring his face in them and leaning against the wall. "This is just perfect. When I get out of here I'm going to kill Jin for not letting me know about the effects of the Crimson Moon." he snorted, folding his arms around his torso. "Damn liar..." the wolf forced himself to remain calm and stood up, walking to the bars of the cell and placed a hand on one, yanking it back with a yelp as he got a very powerful and none to comfortable electrical shock. Furrowing his eyebrows, he stuck his hand between the bars and got another shock, withdrawing his hand quickly.

"You're not getting out of here if that's what you're trying to find out." said a deep voice down the corridor. A tall man with crimson hair and eyes to match stepped around the corner and stood before Kouen with a proud smirk.

"Kyuubi..." Kouen greeted. The legendary fox nodded and laughed.

"You know, Shadow made a good choice when he became friends with you. You're strong, smart, and have a sense of humor. It sucks that you're in this predicament otherwise I'd show you around the capital." the fox commented.

"Well, that's what's fun about being a werewolf. Anything involving the moon screws with our lives. I'm just glad this happens once every two centuries though I would have loved to have found out about this _when _I became a werewolf. At least then I could be at least a little bit prepared." Kouen replied, icily calm. "Geez... Toushiro's never going to forgive this." he groaned, making the mistake of leaning a shoulder on a bar of the cell, jumping back with a yelp and glaring at the bar. "Security's a little high here isn't it?"

"Just on this one. Shadow and I put a couple seals on it when we put you in here. Unless we let you, you can't get out. Feral or not." he grinned, showing off an impressive set of fangs. Kouen rolled his eyes and walked back to the small bed. "Well, I'll send someone to bring you food later. And a friend of yours called, I forget the name. But they said they would be by later." he shrugged and walked off, waving his farewell.

Kouen sighed and laid back on the bed, staring at the ceiling trying not to think too hard. It would only get him worked up and that would result in him going feral again. He ran a hand through his hair and breathed out a puff of smoke, surprised that he did that automatically. He proceeded to entertain himself with a small sliver of fire, twirling it this way and that and turning into various animals and objects and playing out small but very detailed scenes. Such as a deer cantering through the forest or a horse running across an open field. Things like that that would distract him from his thoughts and feelings enough to keep him calm. He didn't even notice that the moon had rose until the crimson light caught his attention. Careful not to look at the crimson circle that was hanging in the sky just high enough to be visible through the small window that was in the cell, Kouen turned his back on it, continuing to manipulate the fire. As long as he didn't look at the moon, he would be fine until midnight when the transformation would become forced. He dreaded that time, Crimson Moon or not.

About an hour before midnight, Kouen heard a heavy door at the end of the corridor open and close and glanced to the bars of the cell, not turning in case he caught the moon in his peripheral vision. He let out a growl when Amanda and Hitsugaya stepped into his line of vision, not wanting his friend and lover to be there when he went feral again. "Akamizu launched his first attack." Amanda said calmly.

"He what?!" Kouen bellowed, his face going pale. "What do you mean 'first attack?"

"You weren't told?" Amanda asked, then she sighed and explained the war. "Shadow and Rowan went out to try and assist the troops in Osaka. But Akamizu is making steady progress towards Karakura. He also sent a platoon to the Soul Society but Yamamoto said that they were doing fine with holding them off. Alex sent Toushiro and I here so we could keep you updated and stay safe. I'm not exactly proficient on the battle field."

"Damn it all... I should be helping them! Not locked up in here because I can't control my instincts." he slammed a hand into the wall, creating an impressive dent, but also got a painful electrical shock.

"This isn't anything you can control Kouen." Hitsugaya said, shaking his head. "The only reason you didn't eat Jin is because I was somehow able to calm you down." he watched with reluctant amusement as Kouen gagged at the thought of swallowing the tiger like he had the labradoodle.

"Good to know that my current state amuses you." Kouen muttered dryly, running a hand through his hair with a deep sigh, trying to remain as calm as he could but the amount of annoyance and anger he was feeling right now was making that hard.

"It doesn't, just the look on your face was priceless. But really, though. Tonight's effects are supposed to be more powerful right? Its probably best you're in here. If you were on the battle field and went feral, then you might turn on your friends and comrades and that wouldn't be very good. The other werewolves are under Akamizu's control, seeing him as an alpha, whereas you don't have anybody to control your actions."

"Gosh thanks. That makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside." Kouen rolled his eyes snorted. "Is there any way at all to seal the feral state? Or at least control it? If I stay in here for the whole week I'll got nuts."

Amanda grunted and crossed her arms. "Quit acting like such a child. Just grit your teeth and endure it. How did you suffer through fifteen years of misery without Toushiro here? Will power." she shook her head. "Besides, I already looked it up in my library and in the kitsune library. The feral state is an absolute state, nothing can stop it once its activated. And the Crimson Moon isn't the only time its available, its just forced then. If you get too pissed off, you could go feral on a regular day. When you killed Aizen, that was a form of the feral state, but it was known as the Tribal state." she saw Kouen nod in acknowledgment and continued. "I asked the best seal experts here and in the feline sector and no one had any idea how to contain it. Sorry Kouen."

The werewolf sighed and glanced at the wash of crimson that was taking up half the cell, knowing that the moon would be at its peak any minute now. "No its alright." he sighed. "You tried, that's all I can ask for." rubbing the back of his neck, he kept his gaze centered on the crimson light as it slowly crept forward. "You know that feeling of absolute nothingness you get when you're dieing or something?" he asked suddenly.

"Yeah." Hitsugaya answered.

"That's what it feels like. Losing control I mean. Its like the world drops out from under you and you have no control over how fast you fall or how far, you just fall. Its scary really, and I don't like it. Its bad enough that my instincts are already strong because I'm only a fourth generation werwolf, but add onto it with my feral form and you get an absolute monster." he watched out of the corner of his eye as Amanda bent down to say something quietly in Hitsugaya's ear before she walked away.

"Kouen you're not a monster." Hitsugaya protested calmly. "When you went feral at the apartment you stopped because I was there, you were able to control yourself. Do you honestly think a monster would even try and contain its instincts." it was a rhetorical question but Kouen shrugged anyway. "No, it wouldn't. You fought the feral side as hard as you could but like Amanda said, its an absolute form. There is no controlling it, at least not at first or not for a long period of time."

Kouen let out a sad bark of laughter. "I knew there was a reason I fell for you." he muttered as he felt a familiar and very much hated heat spread through his body and seize his heart and conscious mind. It was midnight. "Oh no..." he choked out, screwing his eyes shut and clutching his head. His joints popped and his bones creaked as his body changed to his feral form, the strain of it making him let out several yelps of pain. He wanted to tell Hitsugaya not to look but couldn't say or feel anything through the pain. He tried to remain calm but his mind was fogged and it was difficult.

Hitsugaya watched in horror as Kouen changed, listening as the werewolf yelped and snarled in pain, and some times in fear. Before he knew it, Kouen was crouched in his feral form, glaring out the window at the moon, his lips pulled back in a snarl. He howled at it, as though challenging it and then seemed to notice the boy's presence. He stalked on all fours toward the bars of the cage, his ears back and his eyes narrowed, growling and occasionally snapping at the air. Kouen stopped at the bars, exhaling a puff of smoke at the boy and opened his mouth. At first Hitsugaya thought the wolf was going to fry him, but he just roared an angry challenge. It took all of his willpower not to flinch.

Kouen reached up with hand and touched the bars, withdrawing it with a pained yelp and growling at them. He drew up one hand and slashed at them, slicing right through them and triggering an alarm. As the alarm blared, Kouen charged at the bars, getting shocked each time, but Hitsugaya watched in amazement and horror, rooted to the ground, as the bars slowly gave way, bending and groaning under the force they were slammed into with. With a final pop and groan, the bars burst open and Kouen thundered through them, slamming into the wall with a roar. He stood at his full height and glared down at Hitsugaya, growling softly.

The boy shook some but didn't move or flinch when Kouen crouched and snorted in his face, assessing him. Realization seemed to come over the wolf then and the wild light in his eyes seemed to dim some, though Hitsugaya knew that any sudden moves or sounds would set him off. He didn't move as Kouen picked him up like he had before, and held still as the wolf looked him over, bringing up his free hand to prod gently at the boy with one claw. An idea dawned on Hitsugaya then and he opened his mouth. "Kouen." he said, shortly and crisply. The wolf's gaze cleared and he stared at the boy with his ears forward, listening. "Sit." he commanded like he was talking to a dog. The wolf's rear hit the ground. Hitsugaya had to keep himself from laughing at the look of wonder on Kouen's face as the feral wolf cocked his head like an expectant puppy.

_So that's the feral form, he just turns into a wild wolf. Well, dog really if he's obeying like I'm his master. _The boy thought amused to his fullest. "Put me down." he ordered. Kouen placed him on his feet and crouched to be eye level with him. The sirens were cut off suddenly and Kyuubi surged through the door in his fox form, snarling. Kouen roared back at him, standing and towering over the fox. "Whoa, down Kouen." Kyuubi shot Hitsugaya a skeptical look but Kouen whined and crouched behind Hitsugaya, his tail waving slightly, one ear twitching.

"What did you do?" Kyuubi asked, amused but still on his guard.

"His feral form is simply a wilder and bigger version of his hybrid form." the boy replied, rubbing Kouen's muzzle with one hand. "At least with me, if I give him a command he listens but any sudden sounds or movements could set him off so watch yourself." he glared slightly at the fox, accompanied by a growl from Kouen.

"Hm... I think you've heard this before, but I think that's because he sees you as a mate." Kyuubi grunted bluntly. Hitsugaya took on an interesting shade of red and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Yes I have heard that before..." he groaned. "Well, that's wolf mentality for you." he sighed, patting the massive wolf beside him affectionately. He couldn't help but smirk as the wolf's tail thumped heavily on the ground. _He's more dog than wolf... _he thought skeptically. _Not that I'm complaining though._ He mused, snickering inwardly. He was never going to let Kouen live this down.

_** Aw... Kouen's like a big puppy dog! At least with Toushiro heh heh... I'm so mean to poor Kouen but its soo fun messing with him. Enjoy and review. Review make me happy and a happy me is a me that updates quickly!**_


	3. Chapter 3

The Fall

Chapter 3- How To Tame the Beast

_'I feel it deep within, its just beneath the skin. I must confess that I feel like a monster. I hate what I've become, the nightmare's just begun, I must confess that I feel like a monster. I, I feel like a monster. I, I feel like a monster.'_

**-Day three of the Crimson Moon; 1:35 pm-**

Green eyes bored unblinkingly into pale gray blue. Amanda twitched as an insanely bored Kouen stared at her with an owl-like expression. He had been staring at her for about three hours and had yet to blink, move, or look away. She was getting creeped out. "For the millionth time, do you have to stare at me like that?"

"Its better than going stir crazy." he simply replied, cocking his head to the side slightly. "I'm getting to that point though." the wolf continued. Amanda noticed that his fingers were twitching and that the muscles and his arms and legs were clenching as he tried to contain most of his pent up energy. Amanda really wished that Kyuubi hadn't stolen Hitsugaya to talk to him about 'controlling' Kouen's feral form. She was beginning to wish that she didn't get violently ill at the sight and smell of blood and gore, cursing her weak stomach.

The loud bang of the iron door of the cell block hitting the wall and angry footsteps echoing down the corridor made both werewolf and cat demon break away from their staring contest. Kouen stood and walked up to the bars, peering out as best he could without touching them.

"I can't believe you! Orange smoke! I tell them hit the orange smoke and _you_ pop the damn canister right next to us!" Alex's voice screeched. "How stupid are you!? Were you trying to get us killed?" she snarled, coming into view with a sheepish and scared looking Rowan in tow.

"What happened?" Kouen asked.

"We invested the help of the phoenixes and bird demons. Alex ordered an aerial strike but-"

Alex interrupted "This moron popped the canister of orange target smoke and tossed it a bit too close for comfort when they started dropping bombs and blowing fire." she growled. Kouen looked both of them over a bit more carefully. Both were covered in soot and scorch marks with messed up hair and disheveled clothes.

"How stupid are _you_?" Amanda sneered, crossing her arms with a roll of her eyes. "I mean honestly, why would you entrust something as important as an aerial strike with Rowan? I could have done better in my sleep." the temperature in the room dropped dramatically as Alex turned to Amanda with narrowed eyes. Kouen gulped. "Give me a break, even you have to admit that it was a stupid idea on your part."

"That's it!" the brunette roared, snapping at last at Amanda. "I'm sick and fucking tired of your 'worthier-than-thou' attitude. Its getting irritating and I should cut your entrails out and feed them to you for insulting your friends like that! Some friend you are!" her pupils were little slits and her hands were clenched at her sides as she tried to contain her anger.

"I only have a worthier than thou attitude with some people. You just happen to be one of them" Amanda sniffed, flipping her hair in an exaggerated manner. Alex snarled and before Rowan could grab her she leaped at the blond, intent on strangling the life out of her. Two hands shot out of the cell and Kouen grabbed both girls' arms and yanked them against the bars up to their shoulders, giving them and himself powerful electrical shocks but he was able to ignore them.

"Quit squabbling like immature children. We're in the middle of a war and you're only concerned with arguing. Amanda, swallow your ego and think about someone other than yourself for once. Alex, calm yourself and give me your report." he let go of them and they sat down heavily, their hair frizzy and eyes blurred.

"My hair!" Amanda shrieked. "You bastard do you have any idea how long it takes to get my hair this way?" she screeched, leaping at the bars and trying to grab Kouen but he took a calm step back. Amanda's fingers wriggled a centimeter away from his chest and he shook his head, annoyed that they would only get the shocks if he was touching them.

"Your report?" he asked calmly, folding his arms behind his back as Amanda tried to get at him but failed.

"Uh, right." Alex grunted, patting her frizzed hair down as well as she could. "Akamizu is only about a day away from Karakura. He's pushing us back faster than we though he would but all the wolves are staying in their feral forms so long that its essentially killing them. Or at least turning them into vegetables. Most of the vampire soldiers that came to help us had to retreat, and we've lost about two hundred of our seven hundred. Akamizu has thousands but we've killed at least two thousand. It doesn't look good Kouen. But what I don't understand is why he's so determined to get to Karakura."

Kouen rolled his eyes. "Because the bastard wants me dead and is too stupid to send out scouts to make sure I'm still in town." he reached out with one finger and poked Amanda's wriggling hand, making her yelp and withdraw it.

Alex nodded in understanding. "Even Shadow is at his limit. He took on Akamizu after being severely injured in the side and lost." Kouen's heart stopped. "He's in a coma in the hospital here. It doesn't look good but Shadow's too stubborn to give in. Knowing him he'll be back out there by the end of the week."

"By then it'll be too late. You need me out there!" Kouen demanded, keeping as calm as he could.

"No Kouen. Its too risky."

"I don't give a damn! You can't win this war without me! Akamizu is too powerful for you, army or not. You aren't as strong as you used to be and you know it." Alex swallowed hard and took a step back. Kouen sighed and calmed down as much as he could. "You need me out there. I can control myself enough to kill him and no one else."

"No you can't." Alex insisted, ignoring Amanda's whimperings about her hair as the blond tugged on her sleeve. "Rowan get back out there. I don't care what you do, just keep them back as much as you can. Call Eclipse if you have to." Rowan nodded and ran off. Kouen furrowed his eyebrows and rocked back onto his heels. "Other than letting you out, do you have any ideas?"

Kouen drew in a deep breath and though hard. Then he grinned like a mad man and bounced excitedly, starting to go a bit stir crazy. "Ooh! I've got it! Build a communication device so that I can tell you weak spots on any given werewolf." a lie. What he really had planned was a communication device so that he could be in his feral form. He figured that as long as he at least heard Hitsugaya's voice on the other end, he would be able to control himself.

"Uh huh. What's your real plan?"

Kouen's grin fell and he explained the plan, all the way from how to build it to how to make it four or five way so that Alex, Rowan, Amanda and possibly Shadow if he recovered in time could keep Hitsugaya updated on any soldiers that needed help and on Akamizu's location, to keeping it werewolf proof. "Not a chance in hell." Alex snapped, crossing her arms. "Its still too risky." Kouen twitched slightly and suddenly exploded into motion, climbing the bars like a monkey and bouncing off the walls using his pent up energy to his advantage as he leaped and yelled like a mad man.

Kyuubi and Hitsugaya burst into the cell block at the sudden amount of noise and stopped next to a pale Alex watching Kouen go nuts. When the wolf noticed that they were there, he stopped, hanging upside down from the bars. "Hey! Maybe you two will listen to me." he grunted, flipping down to the floor and standing in front of the bars with a small frown. He quickly explained his plan and grinned at the look of consideration on their faces.

"I think its a good idea." Kyuubi mused.

"What? Are you mental? Its a horrible idea." Alex snapped.

"How?" Hitsugaya snapped back, glaring at the demon. "How is it a bad idea?" he heard Kouen snicker behind him but ignored the wolf.

"Because, I don't care how careful he is, or how in control he is he could still snap and obliterate the entire eastern hemisphere! Believe me when I say that for him its possible!"

Kouen snorted and grabbed Alex again, giving her a sharp jolt making her jump and yelp. "You're too paranoid. Is your faith in me really that swayed?"

"Its not that I don't trust you Kouen, its that I have millions of lives to account for. Six thousand humans have already been killed." there was absolute silence and the temperature in the room dropped dramatically. "About ten thousand others have been mortally wounded and will be dead by tomorrow morning. They were the lucky ones." the temperature dropped more and frost started forming on the walls. Hitsugaya furrowed his eye brows and looked at Kouen, who was breathing hard and clenching his fist. Ice was forming at his feet.

_Shouldn't things be exploding instead of freezing? _He mused, but shook it off quickly.

"This gives you a whole new reason to let me go out there and stop the bastard. If you would just build the communication device then everything would be handled and the war could be over by tomorrow." he growled in an icy voice. "Every night the effects of the Crimson Moon get stronger and the werewolves under its control get stronger. If you wait too long, the army will plow through your forces like it was a straw wall."

There was silence in the cell block. After a few minutes Alex sighed. "If this doesn't work, I'll beat you all into next week." she growled. "What all do you need?" Kouen belted out a list of supplies to make a five way communication device that would be able to stand up to attacks and still function. "Alright. Kyuubi, Amanda come with me. Toushiro you stay here, that shouldn't be a problem huh?"

"Nope." both answered at the same time. They watched them run off and as soon as the door to the cell block closed, Kouen deflated, sitting down heavily on the floor and putting his face in his hands. "I don't know how this is going to work. I just want to get out there and help somehow."  
Hitsugaya chuckled and sat down. "I figured, and I'm sure Alex picked that up too." he shook his head. "I think it'll work. After all, if you can out smart Einstein, then you can come up with a way to build a werewolf proof communication device. Also, you're more stubborn than a mule, and even if the communication device doesn't stand up to attacks, you'll still be able to contain your feral side."

"You think so?" Kouen looked up, hope filling his eyes. He sighed and laughed quietly. "Well, I suppose that's enough." he idly drew a small circle on the floor with one finger. "They need to have it done by night fall though. Personally, especially with Amanda-no offense to her- I don't think they can work that fast. She's a perfectionist." both chuckled quietly and faded into a comfortable silence.

**-That Night; four miles outside Karakura-**

_"Alright let's make sure these things work all five ways."_ Kouen snorted from his place on top of a tree, watching the approaching army with barely contained anger.

_"Mine works."_ Alex said, adjusting the neck strap that had volume and the batteries on it.

_"Mine too." _Amanda.

_"And mine." _Shadow, who had recovered thanks to some intensive healing from Amanda and a couple kitsune doctors.

_"Yep, me too." _Hitsugaya chimed in.

_"Awesome. Any last words before I head out?" _

_"Yeah, we'll be in trees and on buildings keeping a look out for you. We'll keep you updated." _Alex said.

_"And there's some armor in a crate about half a mile from here. It should fit your feral form perfectly." _Shadow added.

"Armor..." Kouen muttered to himself. Shaking his head he gave the group on the ground a two fingered salute before pushing off from the tree and transforming into his hybrid form midair. He landed with a grunt and ran off on all fours, searching for the crate. It didn't take him long to find it, it was huge. Cracking it open, he pulled the individual pieces out and looked at them. They were fashioned out of some sort of diamond like material, were red and black with gold spikes on the shoulder and knee parts. "Interesting..."

The ear piece gave out a slight ring as one of the four he had left behind chimed in. _"Kouen get a move on! They're closing in fast." _

_"Got it." _he grunted, letting the choke hold he had on his anger loose and changing into his feral form. He struggled to maintain his control and just barely kept his thoughts coherent.

_"Alright big guy, put the armor on and go kill some bad guys. Akamizu is at the back of the group and the ground force is moving in to give you a hand." _Hitsugaya said, his voice clearing Kouen's head. He let out a small grunt and slid the armor on, finding that it fit perfectly. He made his way through the forest listening to the sounds of a fight breaking out. Growling, he picked up the pace and zeroed in on a pair of wolves that were attacking a kitsune. He let out a snarl and football tackled one of them, back handing the other one and grabbing onto both of their throats, throwing them to the ground. Taking his hands, he rand them forcefully down their bodies, slicing their stomachs open and spilling their entrails. They struggled, yelping and growling with pain and fear as Kouen picked them up and crushed their heads together, smashing their skulls. Taking a dagger from a belt on his side, he sliced through their hearts with a growl, turning to find the kitsune had already left to take on other wolves. _"Yuck. Okay Kouen, make your way toward Akamizu, but help any who need it. The second wave is on its way." _Hitsugaya said, his voice strangled.

_"Now you know how I feel." _Amanda grunted.

_"No, you're just pathetic all around." _Alex growled, still pissed from their earlier argument.

_"That's enough! Focus guys. Alex, if you have nothing better to do, go fight." _Shadow snarled, stopping the two cat demons cold. Kouen waded through the mass of werewolves and other fighters, stopping only to help those who were seriously injured or out numbered. The moon was high by the time he reached the other side of the army. They had reached the city and were fighting amongst the skyscrapers, scaring humans off the streets or getting them caught in the cross fire. A couple times Kouen had stopped wolves who were making a point of going after humans, killing them quickly and getting the humans to safety.

As the scent of blood and adrenaline got stronger, it got harder for Kouen to keep his head clear. Hitsugaya would chime in when he was told the Kouen was having a hard time, the group of four keeping him updated following from on top of the skyscrapers. One exclamation stopped Kouen dead.

_"Kouen! Jin's going after Akamizu by himself! Get over there now!" _Amanda shrieked. This kicked Kouen into high gear and he pelted through the throng of violence, shoving and leaping over any one who got in his way. _Idiot! _His conscious mind snarled.

By the time he got to where Akamizu's scent was more recent, the werewolf King wasn't there, but three wolves were bending over a form on the ground. Kouen roared and charged them, slicing into one and smashing the other two's heads into the ground. Whipping out his dagger, he stabbed all three harshly and threw their bodies away.

Turning back to the form, his heart stopped. Laying, barely breathing, bleeding heavily was Jin. He had a slashed throat and it looked like he had been grabbed because his middle was all sliced up. His breath was ragged, but he opened one eye when he felt Kouen's presence and tried to say something. This shocked the humanity back into Kouen, and he gave up the struggle with his feral side. Nothing happened though, in fact, it felt like he was in his hybrid form.

"Jin!" he yelped, bending over the tiger. Jin barely responded to him, blood flowing from the slash in his throat and his mouth. "C'mon man don't die on me." he growled. A growl behind him made Kouen roar and swat away an advancing werewolf, sending it spiraling into a building. Turning back to Jin, he picked him up, the tiger fitting into both of his massive hands and searched the tops of the buildings for Amanda. _"Amanda where are you. We have a problem." _he snarled.

_"How are you able to talk?"_ she demanded skeptically.

_"I'll explain later! Just tell me!" _he yelled, his voice taking on a deep growl.

_"Uh, the top of the bank. Behind you and to your left. Toushiro's with me._" Kouen didn't reply but spun around and sprinted to the building. He scaled it easily, Jin's limp form tucked into the crook of his arm. Hauling himself over the ledge, he laid the tiger out before the blond and stepped back. "Do what you can." he choked out.

"My word..." she whispered, bending over Jin, running her hands over his body, assessing the damage to his inside as well as outside. "He has massive internal bleeding. I don't know if I can-"

"Try." Kouen growled, cutting her off. She nodded frantically and started healing him as well as she could manage. Meanwhile, Hitsugaya made his way over to Kouen as the wolf watched Amanda with anxious eyes. Strangely, the only part of Kouen that had blood was his hands and mouth. Other wise he was blood free.

"You alright?" the boy asked, stopping beside Kouen.

"I should have gotten there faster." Kouen muttered.

"Its too late to go back now. But how did you get control of your feral form?"

Kouen looked at the boy. "Seeing that." he tilted his head in Jin's direction. "I don't know how long it'll last though. I'm sort of in shock." he sighed. "Once all this sinks in, there'll be no containing it."

_"Guys. They're retreating. I'll round up some able soldiers to take in the wounded and dead." _Alex said suddenly over the line. True enough, when Kouen peered over the edge of the building, the werewolves were pulling back, leaving a bloody mess in their wake.

"Damn cowards." Kouen snarled, glaring after them as they vanished back to the werewolf realm. "I'll get you tomorrow Akamizu. I can promise that."

_** Wooh! That's done. Sorry it took longer than the last one, but I got watching a commentary on Resident Evil 4 by GomeztheWolf on YouTube. Go check her channel out, she's awesomely amazing. Reviews make me happy, and a happy me is a quickly updating me. At least on weekends, I'm not allowed computer on weekdays....**_


	4. Chapter 4

The Fall

Chapter 4- Going Too Far

_'My secret side I keep under lock and key. I keep it caged but I can't control it. 'Cause if I let him out he'll tear me up break me down. Why won't somebody come and save me from this, make it end?'_

**-Crimson Moon Day Four; 6:32 am-**

"Sit down or go outside. You're starting to wear ruts in the floor." Shadow growled at Kouen, who was pacing back and forth in the waiting room of the kitsune hospital. Kouen glared at him and snorted. "You're like a father who's waiting for his kid to be born. I should know."

"Do the world a favor and shut up." Kouen snapped, a scary light shining in his eyes. _He's been in there for two hours... that's not good._ He thought, referring to Jin, who had been close to death when they had reached the hospital soon after the battle.

Shadow stood up and walked over to his friend, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "How about you go find Toushiro and Alex and go assess the damage and rescue survivors. That should take your mind off things while Rowan and I keep an eye on Akamizu's movements." Kouen glanced at him, his green eyes gleaming with stress and barely contained fury. He was now allowed to roam freely as long as he was accompanied since he had proved that he could somewhat contain his feral form.

"Sure." he sighed, running a hand though his hair. "Thanks pal." he let a slight smirk spread across his features and Shadow grinned, patting him on the head like a child.

"Anytime." Kouen swatted his hand and grinned, making his way outside, following the still fresh scents of Hitsugaya and Alex, whom had left to assess damage half an hour ago. Kouen hadn't wanted to go, feeling guilty that Jin is in the condition he is because he couldn't get there fast enough. Walking through the door that contained a portal to the human realm, he grimaced at the amount of damage that had been caused to Karakura and the surrounding area. Humans, demons, werewolves and the like were scattered everywhere, some dead, some dieing, some struggling against death. Others were hardly recognizable.

"Kouen!" Alex called from down the street by a collapsed building. "Give us a hand over here." she grunted, hefting a piece of rubble as big as she was while Hitsugaya handled the smaller bits.

"Ah, sure." he jogged over, jumping over and weaving through the carnage. "Any survivors?"

"Yeah, we had to collapse this building into a bunker for humans. But something must have hit it and collapsed it more. We have to get all the rubble moved before more die." she said, rolling a bit of stone away. "Help me lift this." she pointed to a chunk that was as big as Kouen's feral form. He nodded and grabbed one end, while the cat demon lifted the other. It must have weighed a ton at the very least, but the got it moved, leaving a hole where they could peer through to the humans inside. Hitsugaya climbed up and slipped inside, using his small form to his advantage to go count the dead, injured, and alive.

"Three dead, five injured and eight alive but shaken. Make the hole a bit bigger and we can get them out." he called from somewhere inside. Kouen grabbed a chunk about as big as the other and tossed it to the side with a grunt.

"Pass the dead to Alex, I'll come in and help the injured." he said, jumping inside. Hitsugaya led him to the back where some humans were trying to move rubble off of the dead ones and two injured ones. Kouen moved them out of the way and started to pick up large chunk after large chunk, freeing the live ones and dragging the dead ones out. "Take these two over there, my friend will take them." he said to a few of the uninjured ones. They didn't ask any questions, just nodded shakily and set to work. Kouen looked at Hitsugaya and said; "Any more trapped ones?" the boy shook his head.

"Not that they know of. This section and the entrance were the only parts that collapsed." Kouen nodded, but jumped slightly and looked down when he felt a small hand tug on his pant leg. A small four year old girl was looking up at him with huge watery brown eyes.

"Somethin's wrong with my momma. Can you help her?" she whimpered, sniffling. Kouen melted.

Kneeling down he ruffled the girl's hair with a soft smile. "Sure. Where's your momma?" he said softly. He felt Hitsugaya's eyes on him but ignored it as the girl took his hand in her tiny ones and lead him farther back into the building. Kouen followed patiently. "So what's your name little one?" he asked, trying to cheer the girl up.

"Aki. What's yours mister?" she asked, her sniffles dieing some.

"Kouen. Where's your mom?" he looked around and saw only rubble. Then he heard a low moan of pain and his head snapped in the direction of a large bit of rubble beside some knocked over tables, chairs and other office-like pieces of furniture. One seat, which was a small couch was set up right and he could see the black hair of a woman around one side. Another moan pierced the air and Kouen's blood turned to ice. Scooping up Aki, he sprinted to the woman's side to see that she was heavily pregnant and obviously in a lot of pain. "Crud." he growled, cursing colorfully under his breath. Setting the girl down, he took her temperature, felt her pulse and checked her breathing. Her temperature was high, sweat beading on her forehead, her heart was frantic, and her breathing ragged. "Toushiro! Get Alex down here! We have a huge problem!" he bellowed, catching the woman's attention.

She swallowed hard and reached out, a scared look crossing her features. Kouen stared at her for a heartbeat before reaching out his hand and taking hers. "It'll be alright. Help's coming." he murmured, his eyes solemn. The woman let out a low moan, her back arching as pain coursed through her. Alex sprinted up with Hitsugaya on her heels.

"What's- whoa! This is bad." she panted, skidding up beside Kouen as Aki attached herself to the werewolf's pant leg, staring at the demon with huge scared eyes. Alex knelt down by the woman's head. "I'll take it from here. Take care of the rest." she said, giving them a pointed look.

"I'll trust your judgment. You know more than I do and you're a girl." Kouen sighed. "Should I take the little girl too?" he asked, looking down at Aki.

"Yes. We don't want her to see her mother like this." Kouen nodded and took the little girl's hand.

"Time to go Aki." he said softly, keeping his voice level.

"What about momma?"

"Momma will be fine. Let's go." he picked her up and lead the way out, followed closely by a pale Hitsugaya, who obviously had never seen something like this before. When they reached the front room, a pair of teenagers were trying to help an old man out of the entrance, which was about five feet off the ground. Kouen put Aki down and smiled softly at her. "Stay here with Toushiro." she nodded. Kouen walked up to the teens and old man and put a hand on one of their shoulders. "Go stand back there." he jerked his head back to the rest of the humans. "Its better for your health." he added to get them to move faster.

The helped the old man back and Kouen turned to the wall, sucking in a deep breath. "I can't believe I'm doing this." he growled to himself, assessing the bit of wall that was still solid and attached to the rest of the building just below the hole. Holding his hands in front of him, he let loose a blast of fire, blowing the wall away and into the street with an explosion. Screams erupted behind him and he heard feet scrabbling to get back as he blew another section of wall away to make the exit larger.

Cutting off the steam of fire, he turned to the humans with a somewhat sad expression. "So are we getting out of there or what?" he muttered, expecting things to be thrown at him. The roof shook suddenly and Kouen paled. "Move it!" he bellowed as rubble started to fall. The humans ran past, the old man on the back of a man in his twenties. Toushiro and Aki were the last ones out. "I'll go back for Alex and the woman. Get them to safety." he said as the boy hesitated at the exit. Hitsugaya stared at him for a couple seconds and turned, running after the group to make sure they didn't scatter with Aki on his back.

Kouen cursed as a chunk of ceiling landed next to him and ran to the back of the building. He slapped a hand over his eyes when he saw the woman's pants and underwear draped across the back of the couch. "Can she be moved?" he asked in a cracked voice.

"What do you think you weenie? No one can be moved in this state!" Alex snapped over the woman's pained and scared screams. "For now just keep any rubble from hitting us. Like in a video game or something except there's no reset button." she growled as Kouen uncovered his eyes. As she said it, some of the ceiling broke loose and fell toward them. Kouen snapped out one arm and blasted it away with fire, growling to himself. The woman screamed again and Kouen's ears rang a its pitch. Sticking one finger in an ear, he twisted and turned it as though to poke a coming migraine until it went away.

This went on for five minutes until the woman was holding a screaming baby girl in her arms. Kouen narrowed his eyes at Alex as she helped the woman stand to get her pants back on. He continued to stare at her until she looked at him. "What?" she demanded, glaring at him. Kouen shrugged and helped support the woman, making their way to the entrance only to find their way blocked. "Can you make a path?"

"Only if you want what's left of the building to come down on us. I can make a new door though." _Without fire... I'll just make another hole with a body slam or something. _He unbuttoned his shirt and dropped his pants, leaving his boxers on, not really caring about them; handing his clothes to Alex. He got a confused stare from Alex and the woman but ignored it. He quickly transformed into his hybrid from, making the woman scream, and approached the nearest wall. "Be right behind me." he growled, backing up some. He charged at the wall, smashing through it with a grunt and stumbled to a halt, shaking his sore head. Alex skidded to a halt behind him with the woman on her back, making the demon look small. "That... was painful." the werewolf slurred, his eyes crossed and his ears folded back.

"You look drunk." Alex remarked, setting the woman down and handing her her child back, having been holding it herself.

"I feel drunk." Kouen growled back, shaking his head to uncross his eyes. "Let's get her back to Aki." he muttered, changing back and taking his clothes back from Alex, yanking he pants on and leaving his shirt unbuttoned. Not a heartbeat later, the building gave a last shudder and collapsed fully. The two helped support the woman, the screeching of the infant starting to grate on Kouen's nerves and give him a migraine. _God forbid if I go feral because I get pissed at a newborn..._ he growled to himself, following the scents of the humans that hung in the air.

After they had returned the woman to the group and gotten the humans somewhere safe, the trio continued to search for survivors. Alex broke off and headed for downtown where the damage was about the same, leaving Kouen and Hitsugaya to continue through the business district. "I'm surprised that no rescue squads have shown up yet." Hitsugaya remarked.

"Yeah, but they'll probably be here within the hour. America might send aid too." Kouen replied.

He felt a presence behind them and spun around, feeling something pierce his neck, making him drowsy. He fell to the ground and passed out.

**-Several Hours Later; Location Unknown-**

Kouen felt something sticky running down his right arm and torso and his neck throbbed like there was no tomorrow. His back hurt too. He was laying on a metal table, held down by metal restraints in some form of cell. Cracking his eyes open, he winced at the bright florescent lights that glared down at him. His eyes narrowed, he looked around to find that he was in some sort of testing facility. He flexed his muscles against the restraints, testing their strength, surprised that Akamizu- he knew that this was Akamizu's doing- had restrained him with something as weak as steel. Of course, it was only weak to him, and its hard to find enough unicorns- which exist- to make restraints out of their horns- the hardest substance to exist. It was the only thing that could restrain Kouen long enough for someone to get enough of a head start to possibly get away if he wasn't pissed enough.

To his left was a clear glass wall that looked out on a wide hall with another cell with a clear glass wall just like it. In that cell was some sort of of distorted, gray creature with huge gnarly teeth and long black claws. _Wouldn't want to run into that in a dark alley._ He thought as he looked to the other side of the cell, finding nothing but a plain gray wall. He grimaced when he recognized the place he was in. Area 51, an international supernatural testing and holding facility somewhere in middle-of-nowhere New Mexico, USA. Kouen had been here once before and didn't enjoy it at all, and that was when he was captured because of his own stupidity. Now he was here because of someone else, so he knew that there was no way he was going to enjoy this visit either.

Jerking his arm up and breaking the restraints with a metallic creak, he sat up, snapping the ones around his legs off too. He noticed that a long gash had been made in his right forearm, and another one, which was bleeding profusely was across his chest. He reached up with one hand to feel his neck, paling when he looked at his hand. Spread across his fingers was a slightly transparent, pale blue sticky liquid.

Werewolves are a lot like vampires in the sense that both usually feed off of humans and both produce venom. Whenever a werewolf's fight or flight drive kicks in, their venom glands- which is right behind the ear, much like a snake- swell some, producing more venom so that should they run into trouble, they can bite someone and turn them into a werewolf to preserve the species once they die. Obviously, this is what Akamizu was after, Kouen's venom. This would produce a legion of extremely powerful werwolves that would make Kouen himself sweat. The strength of the werewolf that is made depends on the strength of the werewolf making them after all.

"I see you've figured out my plan." said a voice from the clear wall. Kouen glared at Akamizu, who stood there all high and mighty in one of his best royal robes. "You always have been smart haven't you?"

"You bastard." then he realized something. "Where's Toushiro?" he snarled, getting up from the table and stalking to the wall, standing a hair's width away from it. "What have you done with him?"

Akamizu sneered at him and spread his hands in a flamboyant manner. "Why, he's just down the hall. We tried to get your petty army's plans out of him, but apparently injuring you wasn't enough." Kouen reached up and ran a finger down the gash on his arm. "So we gave him some... incentive." Akamizu shook his head. "That isn't working so far either. No matter." he held up a vile with what looked like blue spring water, but Kouen knew better. "I'm going to create the strongest army to ever exist, and I'll have you to thank Kouen."

"You want my venom? Take it! Take all of it! Just leave Toushiro out of your plans!" Kouen bellowed, slamming one fist against the wall, watching as a spiderweb of cracks appeared then disappeared. Self-fixing glass.

"Why its far too late for that my boy." Akamizu sneered, narrowing his mustard yellow eyes at Kouen, who growled. Akamizu made a motion with his hand and a security guard walked into view, yanking Hitsugaya after him. The boy's hands were bound and a look of pure agony was plastered on his pale face. "He, you see, is our first recruit."

Kouen let out a snarl, letting loose the anger he pent up in him, going feral. Akamizu took a step back as he transformed. Kouen roared at the other werewolf and smashed a hand through the glass, grabbing Akamizu's robe and pulling it through as the glass formed back around it. "You've gone too far." Kouen growled in a guttural voice, barely controlling himself. Akamizu tried futility to pull his robe through, not wanting to tear it, and having too much dignity to strip out of it. He also didn't have the strength to smash the glass.

Kouen charged through the glass with a roar, barreling into the security guards and scooping Hitsugaya up. His first priority now was getting the boy out of there, not killing the currently vulnerable Akamizu. Cradling Hitsugaya- who was shaking violently- Kouen kept him safe as he barreled through the flood of security guards that were coming down the corridor, smashing in doors to cells as he went, letting the supernaturals loose on them. Crashing through the door at the end of the hall, Kouen ran out into the desert as a fighter jet took off from the base to chase them. Kicking into high gear, he left a dust trail as he thundered through the sand and brush. Once he put some distance between them and the jet, he hid in a clump of trees and set Hitsugaya down, crouching beside him and the boy struggled to sit up once Kouen smashed the binds on his wrists.

Hitsugaya's breathing was ragged, his face pale with sweat on his forehead. Pain shone in his eyes even though he put on a brave face for Kouen to try and reassure the wolf. Kouen wrapped one hand around him and sat down, holding the shaking boy close. "I'm sorry. This is my fault." Kouen murmured.

"N-No its not. Quit blaming yourself for everything." Hitsugaya snapped back in a shaking voice. "I've actually been wanting this for a while."

"What." It was more statement than question as Kouen's fur bristled. "What do you mean a while?"

"About two months?" Hitsugaya drew in a shaking breath. "I don't know. But now long is it going to hurt like this?"

Kouen sighed and ran a finger across the boy's hair. "You get used to it in about two days but it lasts about a month. Until the next regular full moon." He felt Hitsugaya stiffen, but the boy relaxed just as fast, running a hand across Kouen's chest fur.

"You know, for someone with a personality as silky as a cactus, your fur is soft." he remarked, trying to lighten the mood. Kouen felt his face heat up, thankful that he was still in his feral from. That thought made him shove his anger to the back of his mind and change into his wolf form, which was about as tall as Hitsugaya is at the shoulder.

"We'll stay here until night then find the nearest town. Those goons will be searching for us but they can't cover ground like I can. I put about ninety miles between us and that base in the space of ten minutes."

"You broke the land-speed record." Hitsugaya laughed, hiding a wince as Kouen curled around his form on the ground.

"My record is four hundred miles in half an hour actually." Kouen chuckled, feeling Hitsugaya shift painfully and lay with his head on the wolf's side. Kouen curled the rest of his form around him, placing his head in the boy's lap. "For now pretend I'm a dog and pet me. It'll distract you from the pain." he grumbled, embarrassing himself for his lover's sake. The boy laughed and ran his hand through the thick auburn fur of Kouen's neck, dozing off after about five minutes, his hand still resting on the wolf's neck.

_** I love doing stuff like that to Kouen. He's so fun to mess with and has such a broad personality that you can make him do just about anything given the right circumstances. Reviews make me happy and a happy me writes better and longer chapters! So review!**_


	5. Chapter 5

The Fall

Chapter 5- Left at Albuquerque

_'I feel it deep within, its just beneath the skin. I must confess that I feel like a monster. I hate what I've become, the nightmare's just begun. I must confess that I feel like a monster.'_

**-Crimson Moon Day Four; 4:43 pm-**

Kouen cursed under his breath as he heard the crunch of at least five pairs of feet on the sand and stone ground. He had realized an hour ago that they were sheltered along a hiking trail, but couldn't move because Hitsugaya was still asleep against his side for about two hours now. Hopefully the scrubby bushes and low trees would be enough to hide them as long as both of them kept still and quiet. But knowing Kouen's luck, the hikers would be making a point of looking for wildlife and notice them. There would be no way for Kouen himself to explain why they were sleeping in the desert, and Hitsugaya was in a world of pain and couldn't speak without using up immense amounts of energy. _Great..._ he growled to himself as the footsteps drew closer. He could just see the hikers if he craned his neck some, and saw that they were looking hard into the scrub beside the trail and even poking some with their sticks. Then he saw the cameras. They were part of a film crew, probably filming for some special on a nature network. _Just our luck..._

Narrowing his eyes, Kouen shifted some, making Hitsugaya stir with a low groan. The wolf pushed his nose under the boy's back, lifting him up and standing, making sure to keep him supported. Laying Hitsugaya gently on the ground, Kouen sat beside him, hiding his stark white hair from the trail as the crew drew closer. Folding his ears back to hide the silver tips of his ears as well, Kouen glared at the humans who decided that it would be a good idea to stop and rest right in front of the pair.

"Why does it have to be so hot?" one of the men groaned, stretching his arms above his head. "I mean I know its the desert but come on."

"Oh shut up." snapped another. "Let's take a look around the area, but stay close to the trail and watch out for snakes."

"Snakes, right." grumbled a third. They split up, their cameras on their shoulders. Two stayed on the trail and looked around the general area, inspecting the bushes closely. Kouen felt Hitsugaya wrap an arm around his leg and looked down to see the boy awake. He put one paw lightly on his shoulder to tell him to remain silent, getting a nod in reply. When he turned his attention back to the trail, he let out a yelp and jumped to his feet when he saw a red haired woman staring at him with a wide open mouth and huge eyes.

"Clark, John, Henry, come take a look at this!" she called to her counterparts as the other male came up beside her. Kouen drew his lips back in a snarl, letting a growl rip from his throat while standing over Hitsugaya protectively.

"God that thing is huge. Hey kid, are you alright?" the man commented, reaching into his pocket for something. Hitsugaya sat up and looked at Kouen in confusion, not able to understand much English. Kouen let out a tiny nod and Hitsugaya turned to the humans, nodding in reply. "Hm... you don't speak much English do you?"

Three other males came up at that moment, pulling the brush back to get a look at the wolf and boy. Kouen let out a low bark as a warning not to get too close. "What are they doing out here? Are they lost?" asked a blonde.

"I don't know." said the woman. "But I don't think the kid speaks English." she got a thoughtful look on her face. "But this canine seems intelligent." Kouen glared at her, feeling insulted. He growled at her and took a threatening step forward, his ears back and his tail erect in a dangerous threat. "Calm down, we won't hurt you I promise." Kouen looked at her, then at the cameras that were pointed at them, hardening his eyes into a glare. One of the cameras short circuited and burst into flames, making the human holding it screech and drop it, pulling a branch from a bush nearby to try an beat out the flames, but as he tried, the camera iced over and cracked into large pieces, useless and beyond repair.

"What the hell was that!" the man cried as the redhead ran a finger along the ice on the destroyed camera. She frowned and glanced at Kouen, who was staring at her with a somewhat smug but still threatening gaze.

"Never mind that, let's get these two to the park gate and get them out of here." she grunted, obviously being the leader of the group. She tried to reach out to help Hitsugaya up, but Kouen snapped at her hand with a snarl, his green eyes narrow.

Hitsugaya slithered out from under Kouen with a wince and put a hand on his shoulder, making the wolf look at him, his ears standing upright again. "Don't worry. I don't think they want to hurt us." he murmured. Kouen blinked at him and nodded. Turning, he jumped out of the brush, whirling back to help Hitsugaya out, who had to grab the wolf's neck as he tripped over a root. Kouen helped him right himself, looking him in the eye for a long instant, standing as high as the boy. He read the boy's emotions through his eyes, noting how much pain he was in, but also saw stubborn determination. He let him hold onto his shoulder to walk better and flicked his tail across the boy's elbow to tell him to leave the communication to him as they followed the humans back down the trail.

The redhead woman dropped back, a sincere smile on her face as she fell into step on the other side of Kouen, who glanced at her suspiciously. "Do you understand English young man?" she asked quietly. Hitsugaya looked at her in confusion and shook his head, the motion making him dizzy for a brief second. He tightened his grip on Kouen's fur, making the wolf look at him and slow his pace some until he was able to see straight again. The woman hummed under her breath and looked at Kouen, who was still staring at Hitsugaya with concern. "How much do you understand?" she asked herself, but the sound of her voice drew Kouen's attention. He gave her a look that clearly said 'enough.' Her eyebrows shot up and she swallowed hard.

"Okay... is there anyway you can tell me what language this boy speaks?" she asked quietly, a tremor to her voice. Kouen cocked his head slightly, looking forward again before looking up at the sun, which was setting some. Narrowing his eyes against its light, he turned his head to the west, staring intently and glancing at the woman every other second. "An Asian language?" Kouen flicked his ears to say yes. "Chinese?" the wolf's eyes narrowed and he let out a disapproving snort. "Japanese." Kouen flicked his ears again. The woman nodded and called to her male counterparts. "John, this kid speaks your language." An oriental man turned and stopped, waiting for them to come up beside them.

"Really?" he mused, looking at Hitsugaya, who stared right back at him. _"Hello. What's your name?"_ he asked in Japanese.

_"Hitsugaya Toushiro. This wolf is called Kouen, and watch yourself around him He has a temper." _the boy replied in a cracked voice. _"Right now he's acting as a service dog." _he continued with a slight chuckle while Kouen snapped his head around to glare at him.

"What did he say?" the redhead asked.

"His name is Toushiro, and the wolf's name is Kouen." John replied with a small nod toward the wolf who was staring down the path, assessing the other three men that were several meters ahead of them. _"How smart is the wolf?"_ he asked as an afterthought.

_"Smart enough to outwit you any given person." _Hitsugaya replied, patting Kouen's shoulder as the would let out a low, somewhat smug rumble. _"He understands any language commonly spoken and can reply to them whether by motions or vocalization." _the boy bit back a yawn, already tired again. Pain shot up his spine and down his arms, making him wince.

_"You're in pain?" _

_"You have no idea."_ the redhead looked at John expectantly and the man translated. Kouen looked at the boy and stopped completely, nudging his chest gently, crouching some. Hitsugaya got the message and climbed on the wolf's back like he was a horse, holding some of his fur in his hands to stay upright, conscious of the scar on Kouen's back. Just when he got comfortable, the chopping of helicopter blades made Kouen snarl and glare at the sky as an Area 51 chopper flew swiftly in their direction.

He glared at the humans and growled over the noise; "You tell them anything about us and I will find you." and took off into the brush with Hitsugaya laying close to him to make it easier for him to move fast. Kouen ran north, out of the nature reserve and along a sparsely used road that turned into a roaring highway. He stayed in the scrub, hidden from the road and followed it north, planning to hide in the next large city they came to. Coming to a stop at an exit ramp, Kouen sniffed around the area and found a tunnel that they could go through without being detected. The only problem was that it lead to a sewer.

Dropping down into the water, which came up to Kouen's dew claw, he walked through the green slimy muck waiting for his breath to return. "You alright back there?" he asked Hitsugaya, who had been silent so far.

"Yeah, just a little shaken up." the boy breathed, sitting up. "Yuck, why did you pick a sewer?" he grunted.

"It was convenient. At least _you _aren't the one walking through it. Bleh." he picked up a paw and shook it for emphasis, his muzzle wrinkling at the smell and feel of the muck squishing between his toes. "We'll go back up soon, don't worry. I don't like it either."

"Understatement. So what are we going to do? Keep running through the desert avoiding search parties or get home as fast as we can?" Kouen though for a minute.

"I'm sure they can hold out in Karakura without me for one night. Akamizu is preoccupied here trying to get both of us back so he can turn me into a factory and you into a killing machine. I don't think he planned this very well though because the transformation process takes a month at the least, until the next regular full moon." Kouen shook his head with a snort. "We'll hide out in Albuquerque for the night. Its near by."

"A month. You're kidding right?" the boy demanded skeptically. "You mean I'm going to be in pain for a month?"

"I though I had already told you this. Well, anyway. Like I said earlier, you get used to it after a couple days. You'll feel back to normal in a day or two, and you may even sprout a few inches-ow!" Hitsugaya had gathered what little energy he had to whack the wolf over the head. "Hey! You're a late bloomer as far as growing goes. I hit puberty early and sprouted a foot in a year, then stopped. You hit puberty last month, which is odd. You're already about an inch taller. The transformation matures the parts of the body that haven't matured already, including height. I don't think you'll grow that much, but you will grow." he explained, feeling the boy's turquoise gaze glaring at the back of his head. Hitsugaya could tell the Kouen was leaving a couple things out, then remembered something that had happened a couple months ago that he hadn't really understood then but did now.

_Flashback:_

_ Hitsugaya opened the door to the small apartment he shared with Jin and Kouen since his grandmother had died of a 'heart attack.' That translated into Kouen scaring the life out of her, literally. Usually, Kouen was stretched out on the couch or on the computer while Jin tinkered with something mechanical in his room, but today, Jin was standing by the bathroom door with a sheepish but amused grin on his face. Behind the door he could hear the sound of throwing up._

_ "Quit laughing you bastard, you did this to me!" Kouen's voice snarled from the other side of the door as Jin chuckled. The tiger's grin just grew._

_ "Gosh you make it sound like I got you pregnant."_

_ "Don't even JOKE about that!" Kouen yelped, his voice shooting up an octave._

_ "Why not-oh... that's why. Well this is your fault." Hitsugaya was just getting more and more confused, so he walked up to the tiger and tapped him on the shoulder._

_ "What happened."_

_ Jin grinned at him and leaned against the wall opposite the bathroom door. "He made the mistake of eating what I fixed for lunch, then made the even bigger mistake of asking what it was. Now he's emptying his stomach."_

_ "What did you fix?"_

_ "Don't. Tell him." Kouen growled from the other end of the door. "Don't tell him anything!" the toilet flushed and Kouen opened the door, still wiping his mouth. He hit Jin upside the head and snarled at him. "The island didn't exactly help your culinary skills. And you weren't that great of a cook to begin with."_

_ Flashback End._

He had never really understood Jin's pregnant crack, or Kouen's reaction to it. Now he did all too well. He kept this to himself though, figuring that now was not the time to be interrogating Kouen about any other changes to his body, inside or out. Instead, he laid his head down against Kouen's neck and scratched the wolf behind the ears to distract himself from the shooting pain that lanced through him at the movement. A deep, comforting growl rumbled in Kouen's chest, making his body vibrate gently and lull the boy to sleep.

**-7:13 pm-**

"Hey, wake up." Hitsugaya heard a soft voice whisper in his ear. He groaned and shifted, trying to go back to sleep. He woke up real fast when he realized that he wasn't on Kouen's back anymore, but on a bed. He sat up so fast that he collided with someone else's head, sending the person to he ground with a yelp. Hitsugaya fell back with a groan, looking on the floor to see Kouen-in his human form- clutching his head with tears of pain on the corners of his eyes and a grimace on his face. "What the hell was that for?" he demanded.

"Sorry. I kind of panicked."

"No kidding?" Kouen cried, standing up. Shaking his head, he stood up. "We're in Albuquerque. We got here about half an hour ago and I had a heck of a time sneaking into a clothing shop to change back and get us a hotel room. Be grateful that we're not sleeping in the desert tonight. Tomorrow I'll get us back to Japan."

"How?"

"Hello, I can fly. Bloodlines come in mighty handy when crossing bodies of water." the werewolf shook his head and looked out the window at the setting sun, his eyes half lidded. He seemed to think about something and then he snorted, smiling ruefully and sitting at the foot of the single bed in the room. "You know what's weird? The whole time both of us were human, I was never really human. My father was a dark angel, which were cast out of soul society as traitors unjustly centuries ago, and my mother was a sorceress, which aren't considered human."

"Why are you bringing this up now?" the boy asked, sitting up painfully.

"I don't know." Kouen replied with a shrug. "Its just something to do until tomorrow comes." his jaws split in a deep yawn, showing of the impressive set of canines he sported. Long and sharp like daggers, the top ones being tipped with red from some form of nervous disorder where the roots in his teeth were open and emptied small amounts of blood into the tips. That's why he never grinned, smiled or smirked with his mouth completely open around humans he didn't know on a personal level.

Hitsugaya shifted, inching over to the wolf and leaning against him, his arms wrapping around one of Kouen's. "When's the last time you slept?" the boy asked.

"A few days. Passing out doesn't qualify as sleep." he looked down at the boy and a flash of guilt ran through his green eyes, but disappeared just as fast. Despite how well he knew Kouen, the wolf's mind was still an enigma to Hitsugaya. Certain emotions or actions he displayed and certain times confused him, and he had this feeling that Kouen was analyzing every second of the day inside and out before it happened so he would always have an answer or and explanation, or a way to help his loved ones. He was one of the smartest people Hitsugaya knew, and despite how much Kouen loved the boy, he was still closed off to him, only letting certain emotions cross his face. Hitsugaya didn't have the skill in reading people by their eyes, but he could pick out some things, and what he knew now was that Kouen was feeling guilty because the boy was in pain.

**-11:58 pm-**

Kouen sighed as he watched the Crimson Moon rise higher in the sky, getting closer to midnight. He glanced at the sleeping boy in the bed across the room and couldn't help but smile. A bang at the door made him jump to his feet as he heard shouting outside and something collided with the door. Hitsugaya sat up, wide awake and looked from the door to the bristling and startled werewolf on the other side of the room. "We have to go. Now." he growled, racing over to the boy and picking him up, transforming simultaneously. He smashed the window as the door fell off his hinges and Area 51 officers and Akamizu ran in the door, Akamizu transformed into his feral form as well. Kouen leaped out the window and to the building across the street from the hotel with ease, climbing up and hoisting himself onto the roof, holding Hitsugaya in one arm. Shots were fired, but they were out of range.

A furious howl echoed through the sleeping town as Akamizu gave chase. But he was unable to match Kouen's sheer speed and was soon left behind. The pair were soon out of the city and across the freezing desert, breaking the land-speed record on their way west. _At this rate we'll reach the coast by dawn._ Hitsugaya thought as he clung tightly to Kouen's arm. The wolf skidded to a halt, kicking up sand and shifted the boy onto his shoulders, dropping onto all fours and continuing his mad dash.

True to form, Kouen collapsed on the beach in California as the sun was coming up. He groaned and waited for Hitsugaya to climb off his back before he changed into his wolf form again, panting heavily. "And that's... how it's done." he panted, deflating into the sand. "I can't run anymore. My energy ran out an hour ago but I was running on adrenaline still. I'm done for now." he groaned, more to himself then to the boy sitting beside him. The wolf shifted, placing his head in Hitsugaya's lap, sighing heavily through his nose. "That's as long as I've ever run that fast for..." he snorted, his ears drooping, but his pride being betrayed in the slight thumping of his silver-tipped tail in the sand.

"I'm impressed. I knew you had endurance, but not of that sort." he scratched the wolf behind the ears with a small smile. "Though we're going to have to leave soon before the beach crowd shows up." Kouen let out a snort and lifted his head wearily.

"You make an excellent point. Uh..." he looked around for any possible cover. Nothing but sand and palm trees, the skyscrapers of the ocean side city silhouetted with the rising sun. "Well, we'll figure something out. But for now... I'm tired." his head thumped back into Hitsugaya's lap and he closed his eyes, his breath evening out and turning into light snores as the wolf got the first actual sleep he had had in five days.

_** I told you that reviews help me write longer and better chapters. Now I need more than two consistent reviewers- one of whom doesn't count cause I see her every day as school. Review people! It will be worth your while, even if its criticism, just no flames.**_


	6. Chapter 6

The Fall

Chapter 6- War Games

_'I feel it deep with in, its just beneath the skin. I must confess that I feel like a monster. I, I feel like a monster. I, I feel like a monster.'_

**-Crimson Moon Day Five; 7:15 am-**

"Alright, hold on tight, this might be a bit rough." Kouen said to Hitsugaya, who was on his back. He flexed his enormous raven like wings and crouched, staring out over the open ocean. "You ready?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder at the boy. Hitsugaya nodded, gritting his teeth as Kouen pushed off hard on the sand, splashing into the shallows and with a leap and a beat of his wings, they were airborne. Kouen circled a couple times to gain altitude, riding the ocean breeze and churning his paws instinctively like he was running. Then, turning westward, and with a burst of fire he shot through the sky with Hitsugaya clutching the fur on his neck as a lifeline. "That wasn't so bad." he called over the wind. Hitsugaya was shaking from cold and fear but managed to reply.

"How long will it take to get home?" he asked, raising his voice.

"The rest of the day most likely. I can't fly like I can run. If I go to fast, I'll run out of energy and we'll end up at the bottom of the ocean." he narrowed his eyes against the wind, glaring at the mass of blackening clouds in their path. "Make that the rest of the day and into the night. We're going to have to skirt around that if we want to live." he said we for Hitsugaya's benefit. Kouen himself would wash ashore alive but with lungs full of water in a couple days should they go down in the storm, but Hitsugaya would drown. Tipping a wing, Kouen veered to the north while dropping purposely toward the ocean to pick up wind before shooting up again while traveling at a faster speed.

**-10:43 pm; outskirts of Karakura-**

"Finally home..." Hitsugaya breathed, walking beside Kouen. The werewolf had ransacked a clothing store that had been abandoned, getting new clothes for himself and the boy. Kouen was in his human form in a plaid shirt open over his bare chest and jeans with work brown steel toe boots adorning is feet. Hitsugaya was in a plain t-shirt and jeans with his own shoes on his feet.

"Or what's left of it..." the wolf muttered, running a hand through his hair with a grimace on his face as he surveyed the destruction. Buildings were collapsed, bodies everywhere, not a sign of life anywhere. "I would say it could be worse, but I dunno... this is pretty bad."

"Actually, there could be no city left at all." said an icy voice behind the pair, making them jump and whirl around. Alex was standing behind them, looking worse for wear. She was in old fashioned Greek style armor that was sliced and dented in several places and had blood all over her. Her shirt and pants under the armor were filthy and her hair was a matted mess from sweat and blood. The unusually cold gleam in her eyes suggested that things were very bad, and beginning to look hopeless. "Nice of you to come back. While you were out gallivanting on the other side of the world, we were evacuating the city and getting ourselves slaughtered." she looked solemnly at the body of a demon that lay mutilated near by and shook her head. She looked them over, her eyes sweeping over Kouen while sending ice daggers at him, making him flinch at her glare, then stopped at Hitsugaya. Her gray-blue eyes darkened and she stepped toward the boy, who gulped. He was able to ignore the majority of the pain now, but it was still hard and he was sure that it still shone in his eyes.

"What happened?" the cat demon growled. Her gaze snapped to Kouen. "What happened?" she demanded, a bit louder and more forcefully. Kouen gulped and explained the past couple days at the speed of light, but Alex didn't seem to have trouble understanding him. The demon sighed and she looked them over. "I was just about to go to a meeting. I want you two to come and help us plan our next move. Akamizu is making steady progress and if we don't stop him soon he'll take over the whole of Japan."

A sudden though occurred to Kouen. "What about Jin? How is he?" he asked as the girl walked past him. She paused for an instant before closing her eyes.

"It was a close call, but Rowan pulled a few strings with Eclipse that got him sent back up." she said shortly.

"You mean he died?" Kouen cried, his eyes wide.

"Yes, but Eclipse sent him back. He's in a coma now, and will be for a while. But he's fine now. Now follow." she lead the way to one of the few standing buildings- an old gas station- and pushed the door open. Shadow, Amanda, Rowan, and a few powerful looking individuals were sitting in lawn and aluminum chairs around a makeshift table. They all looked up when the three walked in.

"You found them." Shadow said, not a question, but a blunt statement. He looked awful. His face was sallow, extremely pale, and dirty, his normally vibrant crimson eyes dull and dirt and blood covering him. One arm was wrapped up but a line of blood ran down the middle where the wound was still bleeding some. The others didn't look any better. Even Amanda looked like hell. Kouen felt like crying, but held it in and pulled up a chair for himself and Hitsugaya, sitting between Alex and a stranger who he didn't know. "Now that we definitely have everyone." the kitsune said, glaring at Kouen, who studied the ground like it was the most interesting thing in the world. "We can start."

"Well first of all, I want to pull my army out." a woman with fiery red hair and black eyes demanded straight off. "Our kind has never stood a chance against werewolves, in fact we've always been hunted by them." another glare was sent Kouen's way. He was starting to feel very small. "And we're just getting slaughtered out there while playing scapegoat for the rest of you."

"Calm yourself Brunhilde." said a man with long white hair and cold amber eyes. "Though I cannot say that I do not share your views. I too would like to pull out my army."

"King Velentijin please." Shadow said, holding up a hand for peace as the two strangers glared around the room. "If you pull out your armies, what do you think will happen? Akamizu will take over your realms once he's done destroying this one. If your armies pull out, we will be destroyed by dawn, and then Akamizu will come after you. Which is better? Fight here, or on your home territory where your subjects can be killed as well." Brunhilde and Velentijin fell silent at this, looks of consideration crossing their faces. "Brunhilde, I understand your concerns as the leader of the witches. Your kind has never had much power, but if you stand together you can flatten a continent, is that correct?"

"I suppose so..."

"And King Velentijin. As the king of the leopard demons, it is your responsibility to ensure that your army stays strong and fights for the right cause. Leopards are known for their cunning and speed. In their feral forms, werewolves are slow and stupid."

"Hey..." Kouen growled warningly. Shadow glanced at him and then back to Velentijin.

"Your recruits can easily skirt around them and attack their weak spots if they think fast enough."

"You are right Lord Shadow." Velentijin muttered grudgingly. A man with brown hair and blue eyes spoke next, glaring in a hostile manner at Kouen.

"Before I speak, I want _that_ out of here." he growled, jabbing a bony finger at the werewolf, who stared at him skeptically. "It might be a spy. You never know who you can trust during war."

"Lord Marek you're not being fair." Amanda protested, standing up to challenge the man. "He's our friend, and has been his whole life. We can trust him." Marek ignored her, standing up and pulling a long spear from no where.

"If you will not send the monster out then I will." he growled, his pupils huge with fear as he advanced on Kouen. He stopped abruptly when Kouen stood and got in his face with one big stride.

"You dare question my loyalty to my friends and loved ones you filthy bastard. Who do you think you are?" the werewolf snarled, his hands curling into fists and his fangs growing.

Marek gulped and moved to bring his spear up, electricity crackling from the end, but Kouen grabbed the shaft. He tightened his hand and somehow managed to sent the electricity back through the spear and up its wielder's arm. Marek screeched and dropped the spear, clutching his arm that now had electricity burns all up and down it. Kouen just rolled his eyes. "You call yourself a Lord? Pathetic." he turned to the rest of them. "Now listen up, I have an idea that just might get this war won and not get anyone else killed." _Hopefully._ He added to himself.

"Why should we trust you?" Velentijin demanded, his pupils little slits. Alex growled warningly at him and motioned for Kouen to continue.

"Its simple. Pull all the armies out, make Akamizu think we've given up. Then when his army has relaxed, I'll go in and kill them all. I'm the only one of us that has that sort of power, and then when they're dealt with, I'll go after the bastard himself. This war will be over by dawn if all goes well." _Hopefully._ He added again.

"Bold... but it might work." Shadow murmured.

"Hey, my name doesn't mean _bold _council for nothing." his legal name is spelled K-O-E-N not Kouen. Its Dutch for bold council, and he was named after a good friend of his father's. The spelling K-O-U-E-N is actually a name in the native werewolf tongue meaning shining light or good friend.

The immortals murmured amongst themselves before they came to an agreement. "Very well mon-I mean Kouen." Marek lamented. "We will go through with your plan. But if it doesn't work, we will come after you."

"You'd think you would learn by now. I don't die easy." Kouen snorted, glaring at the lord. He smelled of feathers so Kouen guessed he was some form of bird demon. "Nor do I take insults."

"Now." Shadow boomed suddenly. "Evacuate the armies. Kouen, we're counting on you to end this tonight." he stared pointedly at the werewolf, who nodded, all traces of amusement gone. The lords and ladies stood up, filing out the door to go find their various armies. That left Alex, Amanda, Hitsugaya, and Kouen in the gas station, Rowan being in charge of the cat demon army at the moment because Alex was so low on power.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Alex asked as Kouen sat down heavily on a chair, his hands shaking.

"No." he replied in a cracked voice. "It was one of those stupid spur of the moment plans that sounds good in a desperate situation. I don't know what I was thinking coming up with something like that." he let out a low moan and tangled his hands in his hair. "But I'll try. It might be easier than I think." he sighed.

"Very well." Alex muttered, an analyzing look on her face. "Report to the town square at eleven thirty. I'll be there to brief you." she continued, motioning for Amanda to follow, leading the way out the door. Kouen was silent for the longest time, his hands still shaking and his face extremely pale. Hitsugaya pulled a chair up beside him and grabbed one of his arms, pulling his had out of his hair.

"I'm an idiot." Kouen muttered, barely coherent.

"Yeah you are. But this will work. I've seen you fight, so has Akamizu. He knows you're a force to be reckoned with. He won't try anything stupid while you're feral, especially now that you can control it."

"Yeah, but what about you? I need to get you somewhere safe. I-" he swallowed before continuing in a softer voice. "I don't want to loose you again."

"You won't. I promise." Hitsugaya reached up with one hand and rubbed in along Kouen's shoulder in a comforting gesture. Kouen looked at him for a while and then looked away, his face seeming less pale and troubled. Then he looked at the time.

Drawing in a deep breath, he stood up, pulling Hitsugaya with him. "I want you to know that no matter what happens, I'll always be with you." he leaned down and captured the boy's lips in a short but passionate kiss. Pulling back, he looked into Hitsugaya's eyes. "Forever." he breathed, pressing his forehead against the boy's forcing a smile. Then he drew away suddenly and was gone.

_** Short yes. Good, dunno. But the next chapter will be the epic battle between Kouen and the werewolf army and part of the battle with Akamizu. The one after that will be the rest of the battle with Akamizu and then... you'll see. Review to help me update faster. They're my eco-friendly fuel!**_


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